Late TD sends Bulldogs to semi-state
PHOTO COURTESY OF RICH FOWLER
Damien Dance gets his hands on the game-winning touchdown catch with just seconds to go, giving Batesville its first regional championship since 1986.
Batesville football trailed 34-21 heading into the fourth quarter on Friday night at home but a wild final 12 minutes of play provided saw the Bulldogs frantically reel off 20 points and a go-ahead touchdown with just seconds remaining allowed them a 41-37 win over Tri-West in the Class 3A Regional Championship.
It was the first regional title for the Bulldog football program since 1986 when Batesville defeated Princeton 23-21 before falling to Indianapolis Cathedral a week later in the semi-state round.
A field goal near the midway mark of the fourth quarter allowed Tri-West (8-5) a 37-28 lead but the rest of the night belonged to Batesville. Gage Pohlman’s touchdown on the ground and a Brady Wonnell extra point trimmed the deficit to 37-35 and that score stood until the final seconds of the game when the Bulldogs pulled off a game-winning play that will be remembered for years to come.
A rollout inside the 20-yard line saw quarterback Will Jaisle hurl a pass into the end zone which bounced off the chest of senior wideout Damien Dance. With the ball hurtling towards the Tri-West defense, Dance calmly brought the football back in with two hands, securing the touchdown that sent a sea of Bulldog players, coaches and fans into jubilation. The Bruins had one more chance after a quick kickoff return but a final play failed to even cross the 50-yard line.
The Bulldogs playing spoiler certainly came as a shock given Tri-West’s dominance on offense most of the night as it combated score after score the Dogs put up. Tri-West scored 20 points in the second quarter to go up 20-14 at halftime and that paired with the 14 points in the third quarter to build up its two-possession advantage.
Tri-West quarterback Jackson Sorgi, the son of former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jim Sorgi, was 21-of-31 passing for 410 yards and four touchdowns with an interception. Logan Anderson and Jax Garver collected 159 yards and 131 yards receiving respectively with Anderson catching two of those scoring passes.
Batesville’s best offense was a combination of Dance and Gage Pohlman. Pohlman rushed 27 times for a season-high 201 yards with a touchdown and Dance caught two touchdowns along with 64 yards on six catches. Jaisle was 8-of-15 passing with three scores against one interception. His other touchdown throw went to Alex Krekeler who caught two passes for 33 yards.
Wonnell was 5-of-5 on extra points to pace the effort on special teams. Defensive statistics for the Bulldogs were not provided by time of print.
Batesville (9-3) heads to No. 2 ranked Heritage Hills (12-1) for the Class 3A South Semi-State on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. with the winner advancing to the state championship next week.
The Patriots, who defeated Batesville 24-21 in the regional last year, are the defending state-runner up in Class 3A and defeated North Harrison 50-7 last week to advance to the semi-state.
